In light of the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, protests supporting Palestinian rights have erupted around the world in the last two weeks.
The protests, which vary by country or even by city, still have some common themes: They broadly condemn Israel’s military siege of Gaza, call for a ceasefire on all sides, and criticize US military aid for Israel. They have been notable in their size and scope, with demonstrations including tens of thousands of people in the US, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
There are also some takeaways that are unique to each region: In the US, the protests appear to mark an increase in public support for Palestinians compared to past conflicts. In the Middle East, where protests have previously been repressed by multiple countries in the region like Qatar, Egypt, and Morocco, it’s revealing about autocratic leaders’ political calculuses that protests are being allowed to take place at all. Some of these protests have been condemned for supporting Hamas’s horrific violence, while other rallies and organizers have actively denounced such positions and criticized the killings of both Israeli and Palestinian civilians.
In many places, the demonstrations expressing support for Palestinians share the goal of putting pressure on Israel and the Western policymakers who have thrown their support behind the Israeli government in its response to the militant political group Hamas’s October 7 attack. Separate protests in support of Israel have also been held over the past weeks, calling for the release of the roughly 200 Israeli hostages Hamas took captive during its violent incursion.
Nearly two weeks ago, Hamas launched a surprise attack into Israel, brutally killing roughly 1,400 people and seizing approximately 200, many of them civilians. In response, Israel launched an ongoing series of devastating airstrikes, and enacted a “complete siege” of Gaza, which is overseen by Hamas, keeping its roughly 2.2 million…
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